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Photo Credit: RIA Novosti/Igor Russak

December 6, 2013

As if U.S. Navy Aircraft Carriers and other surface ships aren't already vulnerable enough (see here and here), about a week ago, Russian Television (RT) published a piece on the Russian Novorossiysk submarine, a silent Varshavyanka-class diesel-electric stealth sub (or, low-observable sub) that's more than a little reminiscent of the ultra-silent "Red October" magneto-drive-propulsion sub in the film The Hunt for Red October. In fact, the new Novorossiysk sub is so silent, it's described as a "maritime black hole". This aquatic apparition of a sub, being "virtually undetectable", is reportedly designed primarily for anti-shipping and anti-submarine missions, but since it's equipped with eight surface-to-air missiles in addition to its 18 torpedoes, there's really nothing to keep the Russians from arming them with nuclear warheads and turning its six Novorossiysk subs into first-strike weapons against the United States and its European and Asian allies.

The Novorossiysk subs top spead has been reported as 20 knots, or 37 kilometers per hour, and it has a 400-mile range on electric power. Maximum operating depth is 300 meters. The sub carries a crew of 52, can patrol for up to 45 days, and will deploy out of Novorossiysk in the Black Sea.

About David Crane

David Crane started publishing online in 2001. Since that time, governments, military organizations, Special Operators (i.e. professional trigger pullers), agencies, and civilian tactical shooters the world over have come to depend on Defense Review as the authoritative source of news and information on "the latest and greatest" in the field of military defense and tactical technology and hardware, including tactical firearms, ammunition, equipment, gear, and training.